We're here in a new town. We know that north of this town is a mountain fortress, and whoever killed our parents, and our town, went there. So let's go kick some ass!
But first, take a look at houses much nicer than ours.
◊
North of town is the winding path through rock, though since the game has no depth beyond levels, I presume it's supposed to represent a winding path up the mountains.
◊
Oh, and in case you're wondering, that red border around the town is a wooden palisade, and a portcullis is the gate. At least, that's what right-clicking tells me.
Trying to find a back entrance
◊ into the mountain doesn't produce anything, so best head up.
But on the way up, I recall from previous playthroughs that there are traps on the path. Notably here.
◊ So I search, and find a rock fall trap.
◊ Though I screw up disarming it and get hit by falling rocks.
◊ Well, I do manage to dodge them, so good luck for me. On the negative side, I'm going to have to see that pile of rubble on the path everytime I walk up.
Another trap waits for me
◊ on the next bend. This one I disarm, and then I come to the walls of the fortress.
◊ Open and inviting, oddly enough. No locks, no anything.
Inside the fortress is similarly deserted.
◊ Ahh, but is it? I have a new spell that should prove quite handy.
One click on Detect Monsters
◊ later...
Ooh, bandits! Those guys can be pretty tough in melee, and they also have an arrow attack. Fortunately, it's not a very damaging arrow, so pelting them from afar with magic attacks is still the best option.
Walking into the fortress, we come to an overgrown courtyard.
◊ Ooh, the nice splash of colour really livens up the place. Compared to the constant grey we're used to.
So we poke our head through the door
◊ into the next room to take on that bandit. We spend the rest of our mana
◊ and take a bit of damage, but the reward is sweet. Instead of copper, he drops a pile of silver! Sweet!
I kill the Goblin Fighter hiding out in the other side, and get my next spell,
◊ Cold Bolt. Time to deal out some pain! It costs two mana, compared to Magic Arrow's one, but it does quite a bit more damage. Still, it's making my magic menu a bit cluttered, so I reorganize it
◊ a bit.
◊ Also worth noting is that on level up, you fully recover HP and MP. Might save your ass at a critical moment.
Now here's one advantage with Detect Monsters and ranged spells. I can see him, but he can't see me!
◊ So I can pelt him with spells from afar. Especially with a bit of scrolling, I can attack him from very far away...
◊
Or at least I could, if I didn't forget about the door that I couldn't see in the way.
One trip up to open the door later, and begin ranged bombardment, take 2.
◊
Now, I CAN attack from afar... but this doesn't mean I'll hit from afar, as this shot shows.
◊ My aim is so bad that he doesn't even notice. I attack him probably four times from that range before giving up and moving up to attack him where my character could see him.
Anyways, with him out of the way, the entryway
◊ is clear. Let's see what grim darkness lurks in the depths...
Hmm, nothing new here...
◊ Not actually much new in general level design, so not much point in showing you everything I fight. I'll just point out the more interesting things I find.
Such as this oddly-shaped room.
◊ I keep thinking of it as a Potion room.
There is one neat preprogrammed room in this level. this rat-infested dump.
◊ Note the rusty armour, and the horde of squeaking rats. While I'm hardly a wimp now compared to when I started, you still don't want to get surrounded by
◊ a horde of biting, gnashing Rodents Of Unusual Size. I follow the old Rougelike tactic of falling back to the doorway so they can only come at you one at a time.
Anyways, that's the first floor cleared out.
◊ And here's my haul,
◊ after identification. Somewhat depressing that a fairly useful large bag was found, and all it was holding was some rusty bracers.
So, back to town to stimulate the economy.
Let's see what's new in the stores. Ooh, the general store has a few spellbooks.
◊ Already got the heal spell, but Phase Door may be useful. It's a short range teleportation spell, good for booking a hasty retreat, though it doesn't take you that far away. Also note the Small Chests. Chests aren't exactly good for actually hauling loot in, considering how large and heavy they are, but they're nice things to find in the dungeon.
Ooh, Gauntlets of Slaying
◊ at the armour shop. Sure, you can get enchanted gauntlets for protection, strength, or dexterity... but Slaying improves your to-hit and damage directly. Plus they look cool.
One thing to note is that not every enchantment is self-evident. There's two magic maces here,
◊ but one is more powerful. You'd only notice this by how one costs much more than the other, and you'd probably only notice that if you right-clicked on it. Which tells me that one only "Increases chance to hit," while the other "Greatly increases chance to hit..." I actually forget if I bought that or not.
Anyways, here's my new setup
◊ after all that. I decided to keep the large bag. May prove handy to haul more loot out of the dungeon. Also kept one of those magic rings I found.
I buy up some spellbooks and study them.
◊ And then back to the dungeon.
For the first few levels, it's very handy to have stairs
◊ close by so you can quickly get from one level to the other. Though this doesn't mean you won't meet up with a new nasty
◊ along the way. Giant Trapdoor spiders can be unpleasant, since they poison. A little tougher than the giant scorpions I've seen around. Still, I get lucky, and this guy isn't able to poison me before I freeze him to death.
When you reach a new level, it's a good idea to quickly cast Detect Monster,
◊ so you can quickly scan the level. Not just for any tough monsters, but also to see if there's any possible planned encounters, usually noted by a large gathering of creatures.
Nothing like that here, but I do see a huge ogre
◊ on the other side of the map. Again, fairly tough. But, thankfully, no ranged attacks, so a spell barrage should do them in.
I've complained before about unlit rooms.
◊ But, that's why I have that wand of light. One click later, and voila!
◊ I can see! And so can the goblin...
Not sure if I pointed it out before, but here's a scything blade trap.
◊
Another dark room?
◊ I think I casted light almost four times in this dang floor.
A very... odd trap. A pool of water.
◊ How is that a trap, I wonder? I mean, wouldn't it actually cushion your fall? Considering you can walk right out, it's not like it's a hundred-foot fall.
And here's the Ogre.
◊ He was asleep when I first walked in, so I was dancing around a bit... But he woke up sooner than I thought. Still, I was able to defeat him,
◊ though he did take a lot out of me. Look at my HP and Mana in between the last two screens. Ooh, and he drops silver as well!
Anyways, I climb up the stairs, and see... Something...
◊ A little...
◊ off...
◊ with the random monster generation.
◊ What the hell? The first floor turned into a snake pit!
◊
Well, I run around and kill 'em all. Which wasn't that smart, considering how I get poisoned and nearly die,
◊ and I'm out of Mana as well. Fortunately, that's what my Cure Moderate Wounds potion is for on my belt. It doesn't cure much,
◊ but hopefully the poison will work itself through before it works me through. Which it does. My hitpoints were in the tens, though. Gotta watch myself.
Here's my haul.
◊ Note that one spellbook that I can't identify with my spell. I'm not sure why, but I guess the game makes certain things unidentifiable with your own magic, so the poor Sages
◊ don't feel completely useless...
◊ WAIT! RUNE OF RETURN?!? EFFIN' A!!!
Rune of Return is one of the best spells in the game! What does it do? Teleports you to the last level of the dungeon you were on, or takes you out of the dungeon back to the entrance. No more navigating a bunch of stairs, now it's in and out. Lynch 'em and Loot 'em!
Darn, the weapon shop has a really sweet
◊ battle axe for sale, but I can't afford it. Note the enchantments aren't the usual bonuses to attack and damage. This axe provides an armour bonus, as well as a Con bonus. A very defensive axe. Heck, I once saw a sword that provided a bonus to Intelligence.
Nothing too new on the armour front, but now I can buy some magical bracers.
◊
Ahh, sweet! A large pack
◊ for sale! Now I can haul even more loot!
So after some more shopping, here's my new setup.
◊ Decided to pick up a Staff of Cure Moderate as well. That'll undoubtedly come in handy in a pinch if I need a quick shot of healing.
And that's all for now.
Oh, and just to confirm, I've only died that one time so far. Haven't had to save scum at all since then.
